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Taxes 8 min read

Every Texas Tax Deadline a Trades Business Owner Needs to Know

Texas has no state income tax — but that doesn't mean Texas businesses get off easy. Here's the complete deadline calendar, what each filing is for, and what happens if you miss it.

Kellen Boulter, CPA
Founder, Northbound Financial · Texas-licensed CPA

The Texas tax illusion

People move businesses to Texas for the "no state income tax" pitch. It's real, and it's meaningful. But it creates a dangerous illusion that Texas is somehow simpler from a tax perspective.

It isn't.

Texas has its own stack of filings — Franchise Tax, Public Information Report, Business Personal Property Tax, sales tax — on top of federal filings like estimated taxes, payroll returns, 1099s, W-2s, and annual returns. Miss the wrong one and your entity can be administratively forfeited by the state, which means losing your LLC's liability protection.

Here's the full calendar, month by month, with what each filing is and what missing it costs.

January

January 15 — Q4 federal estimated tax (for prior year)

Last quarterly installment for the previous tax year. Required if you're self-employed or your business doesn't withhold enough.

January 31 — 1099-NECs to subcontractors

For 2026 and later, file 1099-NEC for every subcontractor paid $2,000 or more during the calendar year. (For 2025 and prior, the threshold was $600.) Send copies to recipients and file with the IRS by January 31.

Penalty for late filing: $60 per form if filed within 30 days, climbing to $330+ per form for longer delays.

January 31 — W-2s to employees and Form W-3 to SSA

Same deadline, separate filings. W-2 to each employee + transmittal Form W-3 to the Social Security Administration.

January 31 — Form 940 (Federal Unemployment Tax)

Annual federal unemployment tax return for employers.

January 31 — Q4 Form 941 (federal payroll)

Quarterly payroll tax return covering October–December of the prior year.

March

March 15 — S-Corp and Partnership returns

Form 1120-S (S-Corp) and Form 1065 (Partnership) are both due March 15. You can extend to September 15 by filing Form 7004 before the original deadline.

Penalty for late filing: $245 per shareholder/partner per month, up to 12 months — even if no tax is owed. A 3-partner LLC filed 2 months late = $1,470 in penalties.

April

April 1 (most counties) — Texas Business Personal Property Tax rendition

Business equipment, vehicles, inventory, and machinery are appraised annually by your county appraisal district. You're required to "render" (report) what you own.

Deadlines vary by county but typically fall around April 1–15 in:

Check your specific county's appraisal district website for exact dates. Late filing typically incurs a penalty of around 10% of the tax due.

April 15 — Personal returns (Form 1040) and C-Corp returns (Form 1120)

Most trades owners file 1040 with Schedule C, K-1, or W-2 attachments depending on entity structure. Extension to October 15 available via Form 4868.

April 15 — Q1 federal estimated tax (for current year)

First installment of the new year's estimated taxes. Especially important for self-employed owners and S-Corp distribution recipients.

April 30 — Q1 Form 941 (federal payroll)

Quarterly payroll tax return covering January–March.

May — the big one

May 15 — Texas Franchise Tax & Public Information Report (PIR)

This is the most Texas-specific deadline on the calendar. Every LLC, corporation, partnership, and most other Texas entities must file by May 15.

The good news: For the 2026 report year, the no-tax-due threshold is $2.65 million in annualized total revenue (up from $2.47M in 2025). If your business is under that threshold, you owe $0 in Franchise Tax.

The catch: Even if you owe $0, you must still file the Public Information Report (PIR) or Ownership Information Report (OIR) by May 15.

Penalties for missing May 15

$50 late filing penalty automatically (even if no tax is owed). If tax is owed, 5% for 1–30 days late, 10% beyond 30 days. Interest accrues. And the biggest risk: your right to transact business can be administratively forfeited by the state — meaning your LLC loses its liability protection until reinstated.

This is the single most-missed Texas deadline for small businesses. Don't be the one. You can extend to November 15 by filing Form 05-164 by May 15 (and paying any estimated tax owed).

June

June 15 — Q2 federal estimated tax

Despite the name "quarterly," the IRS doesn't space these evenly. Q2 is due June 15, not June 30.

July

July 31 — Q2 Form 941 (federal payroll)

Quarterly payroll tax return covering April–June.

August

Nothing federal or state due unless deadlines roll from July. Take a breath.

September

September 15 — Q3 federal estimated tax

Third installment.

September 15 — Extended S-Corp and Partnership returns

If you extended your S-Corp or Partnership return back in March, this is your final deadline. No further extensions available.

October

October 15 — Extended personal returns (Form 1040)

If you extended your personal return back in April, this is your final deadline.

October 31 — Q3 Form 941 (federal payroll)

Quarterly payroll tax return covering July–September.

November

November 15 — Extended Texas Franchise Tax

If you extended your Franchise Tax back in May, this is the final deadline.

December

December 31 — Section 179 / equipment placed in service

Last day to place qualifying equipment in service for current-year Section 179 and bonus depreciation deductions. "Placed in service" means delivered, in your possession, and being used (or available for use) in your business — not just ordered or financed. See: Section 179 & The Truck Deduction.

December 31 — Solo 401(k) established by

If you want to make Solo 401(k) contributions for the current tax year, the plan must be established by year-end (contributions can be made later, up to the tax deadline).

Texas sales tax — variable schedule

If your business collects sales tax — most pure-service trades don't, but materials sales or certain new construction projects can trigger it — the Texas Comptroller assigns you a filing frequency based on volume:

Texas does not currently impose sales tax on most labor-only service work, but it does apply to many materials sales and certain new construction projects. If you're not sure whether you should be collecting sales tax, ask a CPA who knows Texas — getting this wrong creates major back-liability problems.

Federal payroll tax deposits (more frequent than 941 filings)

If you have employees, the 941 quarterly filings are just the reports. You also have to deposit the actual taxes much more frequently:

Late payroll tax deposits draw penalties starting at 2% and climbing to 15% the longer they're delinquent. These add up FAST.

What happens when you miss deadlines

Late penalty summary

1099-NEC late: $60–$330 per form
W-2 late: $60–$330 per form
Form 941 late: 5% per month, up to 25%
Form 1120-S / 1065 late: $245 per shareholder/partner per month
Texas Franchise Tax late: $50 minimum, 5–10% if tax owed, plus risk of forfeiture
Texas BPP late: typically 10% of tax due
Late payroll deposits: 2%–15%

None of these are catastrophic individually. But a trades business missing several deadlines in a single year — common when no one is tracking — can easily rack up $3,000–$8,000+ in pure penalty and interest cost. All preventable.

Putting it all in one calendar

Print this. Put it on the wall:

2026 deadline calendar at a glance

Jan 15 — Q4 estimated tax (prior year)
Jan 31 — 1099-NEC, W-2, Form 940, Q4 Form 941
Mar 15 — S-Corp & Partnership returns
Apr 1–15 — Texas Business Personal Property rendition (county varies)
Apr 15 — Personal return, C-Corp return, Q1 estimated tax
Apr 30 — Q1 Form 941
May 15 — Texas Franchise Tax & PIR ⚠️
Jun 15 — Q2 estimated tax
Jul 31 — Q2 Form 941
Sep 15 — Q3 estimated tax, extended S-Corp/Partnership returns
Oct 15 — Extended personal returns
Oct 31 — Q3 Form 941
Nov 15 — Extended Franchise Tax
Dec 31 — Section 179 placed-in-service deadline, Solo 401(k) established

Plus: Quarterly Form 941, monthly or quarterly Texas sales tax (if applicable), monthly or semi-weekly federal payroll deposits, and county-specific BPP variations.

How to actually not miss any of these

Three options:

  1. Maintain a master calendar yourself with reminders 30, 14, and 3 days before every deadline. Works if you're disciplined; most owners aren't.
  2. Use accounting software with built-in reminders — but most don't cover Texas-specific items (Franchise Tax, PIR, BPP).
  3. Hire a firm that handles the full Compliance Package — every deadline above prepared, filed, and confirmed on your behalf. You don't have to track or remember any of it.

Where Northbound fits

If managing all of this yourself sounds like a part-time job — it kind of is.

The Compliance Package included in our Growth plan exists specifically so trades business owners can run their actual business and trust that every required filing is being prepared, filed, and confirmed on time. The package specifically covers:

If you're currently on top of some of these and slipping on others — which is the norm — book a call and we'll figure out which ones are at risk and what handing them off looks like.

Book a free 30-minute discovery call

All deadlines cited are based on 2026 federal and Texas tax law as of publication. Specific dates can shift due to weekends and holidays — the IRS and Texas Comptroller typically move deadlines to the next business day. County BPP deadlines vary; verify with your specific county appraisal district. Confirm current deadlines and figures with the IRS, Texas Comptroller, or a qualified tax professional. Nothing in this article constitutes legal, tax, or financial advice for your specific situation.

Want every deadline handled?

Book a free 30-minute discovery call. No pressure, no sales pitch — just a real conversation about your filings.

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